China have been ranked as third seeds and placed in the same pool as host country Italy and fourth seed Cuba for the Women's Volleyball Grand Prix Final Round.

The other group competing in the final round consists of first seed Brazil, second seed Russia and Asian powerhouse Japan.

China secured third place in the overall rankings after scoring three more victories over the weekend for a total tally of 17 points. The team, lead by coach Chen Zhonghe, only placed after Russia because of its inferior points ratio.

Brazil was the only team to defeat China during the qualifying rounds. China has a strong bid to accede to the semi-finals on Saturday as it will not face Brazil in the group matches.

Russia is returning to the competition after a one-year break, making it the only team in the World Grand Prix Final Six that did not play in the final rounds last year. The team has more than made up for lost time, putting in a strong performance to finish the preliminary rounds in second place, just behind the ever-dominant Brazil.

(fivb.org September 6, 2006)